Furniture stores win with football promotions

Some consumers will receive refunds on purchases

Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, January 8, 2010

HOUSTON — While the University of Alabama defeated the University of Texas in the college football championship last night, two Texas furniture retailers also pulled out a win with successful promotions tied to the game.

Shoppers who picked the winner during an eight-day promotional period are getting a 50% discount on their purchases of $5,000 or more from Houston-based Gallery Furniture.

Store owner Jim McIngvale said more than $1 million in sales were tied directly to the event and that there were about 70 winners who will get between $300,000 to $400,000 in refunds at a big refund party the store will throw.
McIngvale said the response was tremendous. He said the buzz from the promotion helped create a buying frenzy and added business, including from consumers who didn't spend the $5,000 needed to participate.

"I think we'll make money," he said. "It brought in a lot of people that have never been in the store before."

Customers of the two Ashley Furniture HomeStores in Austin, Texas, meanwhile, were to get their Jan. 1-3 purchases free if they picked the exact final score of the game between the hometown Longhorns and Alabama's Crimson Tide.

The promotion was part of a Three-Day New Year Sale during the same period. The HomeStores, on Interstate 35 South in Austin and on I-35 North in nearby Pflugerville, Texas, are part of Top 100 company Hill Country Furniture Partners. There was no limit to the amount of free furniture or the number of winners.

As of this morning, there was no word yet from the company on whether there was a winner or winners. But Nicole Ivey, senior director of marketing and advertising for Hill Country, indicated that the stores were a winner, as sale for the period were "way over last year's" sales.

"We had a lot of energy and excitement built around the promotion," she said.

Hill Country worked with promotional specialist SCA Promotions on the event.

Shoppers also had a chance to win Texas Longhorn prizes given out every hour from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Jan. 2, including team apparel, a Texas football DVD, tickets to an upcoming basketball game and items autographed by Texas coaches Mack Brown and Rick Barnes. The store also was to give a way a grand prize 82-inch Mitsubishi home theater television.

The event was promoted along with a five-year, no interest credit offer and free 32-inch and 42-inch HDTVs on purchases over $1,999 and $2,999, respectively.